Angel LaCanfora: News

It boggles my little blonde brain how many hits this website gets everyday, averaging between 300 - 1500 hits a day, I kid you not. I'm all at once humbled and head-scratchy, but I won't question it! I appreciate your visits...

Stay tuned for my latest mosaic, a sweet little abstract number that I'm putting the finishing touches on today. 

<Happy Birthday, Beatle George>

68 hours worth of solid focus & concentration, dozens of cuts to my fingers later, resulted in "Snow Tree with a Sun Blossom Sky. 13"x11" smalti glass on wood. It can be seen on the front page of this site & also in the photo gallery...

I am thinking about a day when I was in the 1st grade at my grammar school in Midway City, CA. We were in class and it was coloring time. All of us students had a coloring book and we were given instructions on how to color our pictures with our crayons. I set about the task as my elderly teacher, Mrs. Knox, idly wandered about the room, glancing down at her charges work. She paused when she got to me and chided: "you're supposed to outline the picture then fill it in." I looked up at her and with complete confidence responded, "But I'm filling it in first and was going to outline it last." Mrs. Knox looked at me quizzically then moved on. And thus, my art career was born.

Hello friends,

I've had to postpone my gig originally scheduled for tomorrow at Cville Coffee's Stage Cafe due to a wonky elbow. Such is life. So I'm babying my right arm, getting it all nice & healed up so that I might climb right back up onto that performing horse!

In art news, I'm half-way through a new mosaic which, if I stay focused, may turn out to be one of my best to date, IMHO.

Meanwhile, I'm learning to love snow! Approximately 37 inches of it thus far in Charlottesville this winter!

Hope everyone's warm & dry...

Ciao for now,

Angel

 

Just posted a brand new song, written yesterday, recorded this evening. You might hear an ever-so-slight Dylan influence in "Out There." See if you can pick up on it!

Posted a new recording of an older song today, "Sister Storm." Written in 1994, this was a collaboration with my old bandmate, Steve Frutos, from Cowboy Buddha. He wrote great lyrics & I handled the music end. While I've always liked the song, I've never had a decent recording of it. So here we go!

Also, you might have noticed the flash player up top, playing a handful of some of what I think, are my better recordings.

OK, now back to work (fun!)

Ciao!

 

 

with glimpses of yours truly throughout...

I've assembled some of my favorite photos I've snapped over the years & set them to the tune of my song, "Mystery Syd." Have a looksee!

Here's a song I penned last night, recorded earlier today, along with a video of some scenes around my neighborhood here in Charlottesville, VA. Hope you enjoy!

...of me doing my take on a classic r.e.m. song...

 

OK, well...I had fully intended to play tonight at Legend Brewery in Richmond, but Mother Nature had other plans for me. I'm snowed in & going nowhere fast! The important thing is that I'm warm & dry (when I'm not outside chipping away at the snow mountain entombing my car!). And I hope everyone is doing good, too, and enjoying this crazy weather!

Hopefully things will be back to normal in time for next Sunday & I'll be able to return to Cary Street Cafe...

Til then, wishing y'all a happy & peaceful holiday!

Just updated the Links section of this here site. Otherwise, things are slow right now, due to holidays & a virus I caught last week. So while I wasn't able to make it to Cary St. Cafe last night, I still have every intention of continuing the Sunday night tradition of playing my usual 40 minute set there, resuming next week.

In mosaic news, I'll be hanging more artworks of mine tomorrow at Bozart gallery, to be displayed for the duration of December. Also have some of my handmade ornaments for sale there, check them out!And I'll be installing my largest mosaic piece, "Sunburst," at Rapunzel's Coffeehouse in Lovingston later in the week.

And, of course, if any of the mosaics you see pictured on this site strike you as a potentially great Christmas gift for someone, by all means, drop me a line & make me an offer!

 

It's my understanding that the print edition of our local rag, the Hook, will feature an ad for an art festival this week in which I was to have taken a part in. This show, which was to have been held at the Omni hotel on Dec.4th, has been cancelled by the organizers. So if you see this ad featuring my handmade ornaments, contact me direct if you're interested in purchasing any of these. And sorry for any confusion! Oy...

Here's a new video, one of my quasi-novelty songs.


In other news, my experimental internet band, the Learning Lovers Project, has been kicking into gear as of late. All of us "Lovers" are hitting the recording apparatus with fervor. Meantime, longtime Lover Ross has unearthed an alternate take of our song, "Jazz to Be Paranoid By." You can find it on our MySpace page, here:
http://www.myspace.com/thelearningloversproject. Busy busy...

Just posted my take on Bob Dylan's "One More Cup of Coffee" in the Music section, a song I've been singing for about 25 years...it'll never get old!

A reminder that I'll be at Legend Brewery in Richmond on Sunday evening, playing a "tweener" while most of Blue Line Highway takes a breather. That is, everyone except for their lead guitarist John Leedes, who kindly offered to play along with me. And we'll probably even perform "One More Cup!"

And if the planets are in alignment, then after Legend, I'll head over to Cary Street Cafe to play my usual Sunday night set. Busy busy...

 

 

Posted recording of a new song, "Chapstick Weather," today. Check it out in the music section. Also posted a picture of my latest mosaic, "Nature's Poem."

Busy, busy...

Where you can find me performing my little ditties in the near future;

 Sunday nights, 9pm - Cary Street Cafe - 2631 W. Cary St., Richmond, VA. http://carystreetcafe.com/  This is a new open mic that's just getting off the ground. Since it's so new, turn-out in terms of performers has been lowish. Subsequently, host Jeremy has been giving me free reign & letting me hog the stage for pretty much as long as my heart desires. I don't know how long my luck will last with the "Cary St. Angel Show," but even if it turns into a popular event, I'll probably keep attending since it's a cool place to play anyway.

 Thursday, Nov.5th, 7pm - "Guy Fawkes Day Celebration," Nelson County - Hosted by the Charlottesville Skeptics Group, this event is intended to replicate the British tradition of Guy Fawkes Day, replete with bonfire and the burning-in-effigy of some deserving political figures. I'll be playing a 45 minute solo set. This event is open to all, not just members of the group & is taking place at a member's home. Anyone interested in attending, please contact me for details

 Sunday, Nov. 15th, 7:30pm - Legend Brewery, 321 W.7th St.,Richmond, VA. http://www.legendbrewing.com/  I'll be playing a short set in between sets by my friends, Blue Line Highway. Guitar virtuoso John Leedes will be sitting in with me on a few tunes (or maybe more, if I can coax him into it...) 

C'mon by & say "hi!"

I will probably, most likely, quite maybe possibly, be playing at Cary Street Cafe's open mic night Sunday, October 25th. Barring any unforeseen calamities or weather anomalies... How's that for non-commital?

Cary Street Cafe, 2631 West Cary Street, Richmond, VA

website: http://carystreetcafe.com 

I love Cary St.Cafe in Richmond, VA! I went to their open mic tonight expecting to play the standard 10 minutes or so, but they just wouldn't let me stop!! The crowd in this funky/hippy bar was quite generous of spirit & encouraging & by the time all was said & done, I had played a full 45 minute set of 12 (mostly) original songs! Woo hoo!! With a reception like that, you can be sure I'll be back! Thanks Cary Street!!

 

 

Review of the Classic Film

It took a lot to upstage the great Bette Davis (whom I love), but Claude Rains (also one of my favorite actors. I will watch anything he is in!) succeeded in this lost b&w classic from 1946. Here we have a love triangle (which never ends well!) played out by classical musicians, pianist Christine (Davis),cellist Karel (the able Paul Henreid) and the sadistic, domineering composer Holenius (Rains). Christine and Karel were madly in love when they were seperated by war, and while it's never directly said, it's implied that Karel spent the years in a concentration camp. Karel is a bundle of nerves, understandably suffering from PTSD. Christine had assumed that he was dead and during their separation, took up with the wealthy and well-known Holenius. Christine is reluctant to tell Karel about her relationship with Holenius and therein lies the deception. She nervously blathers to Karel about how Holenius was just her teacher and she his pupil. But Karel isn't buying it and goes to confront Holenius about their relationship. The smooth-talking and charismatic Holenius wins Karel over by asking him to perform a concerto he has penned. Karel is thrilled with the opportunity, but Christine is suspicious, knowing that the dastardly Holenius is up to something. On the night Karel is to perform the concerto, Holenius takes the couple out to dinner at a fine restaurant, where ensues a very funny scene in which Holenius stalls the waiters, yammering on about what to order, so that he might fray the nerves of the fragile Karel before performing. The writing for this scene is witty and sharp and was worth my rewinding to watch twice! I don't want to spoil the ending but like I said, love triangles never end well!

Apparently this film flopped in theaters upon its release. Perhaps the country wasn't in the mood for dark, satirical film noir. But it's interesting to note that this film was making an attempt at pushing some boundaries. In a fleeting scene of upscale audience members mesmerized by the cellists' performance, we see an African-American couple nodding their heads in enjoyment. The big band playing at Christine and Karel's wedding reception includes many female musicians.

Henreid and Davis are both very good as usual. Henreid does a good job of fake-cello playing, at least to my non-cello playing eyes. The film features a great original score by composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold. And while this isn't a great film, it's worth seeking out for Rains' performance as the highly neurotic Holenius.

A bunch of my mosaics are slated to be featured at one of my favorite joints around, Rapunzel's Coffeehouse. It's located way out seemingly in the middle of nowhere, but that's part of its charm! The drive there from Charlottesville is beautiful. Once there, you'll find that Rapunzel's is like a groovy oasis of funky comfort, great coffee and treats embellished with great live music (and I'm not just saying this because I've performed there!).
Details:
Rapunzel's
924 Front Street,
Lovingston, VA
Phone: 434.263.6660
Website:
http://www.rapunzelscoffee.com/

Check out "Au Naturale," in all its' organic splendor in the Pictures section of this here site. Soon to fly the coop and be mounted on the wall of the lovely Local restaurant/gallery here in Cville. Stay tuned for further details...

My experimental internet band, the Learning Lovers Project, has been on a hiatus for sometime now. But talks are currently underway to resurrect the Project. It helps that there's to be an infusion of fresh blood in the form of the fabulous soul/jazz singer, Patricia Page.

Here's how the LLP works:
Each member has the opportunity to post an "Idea" track to a private web page. LLP members check out the Idea track and decide whether or not they want to contribute something to it. So say Ben posts Idea Track #12, and I decide I would like to put some lead guitar on it, I call it, and then it's assigned to me. Then maybe Bob wants to add a bass, so once I'm finished with my part, I upload the track now with added guitar, then Bob downloads it and adds his bass bit and reposts it to the page, where it can then be worked on by the next member. And there are no constraints. If I post a reggae bass part as my Idea track, then no one is by any means held to the parameters of the reggae genre. That's the fun of the LLP; it's experimental, and the point is that everyone brings to the table their own contributions. Nothing is too outrageous. This is a loose, flexible collective, an amorphous blob of a band, where everyone enjoys the freedom to contribute whatever their heart desires.

Another benefit of doing things like this is that the roster can be as large as possible, for not everyone has to contribute to a song. If one member listens to an Idea track and isn't inspired, then they can take a pass. The Idea track originator gets to make the call on when a song is finished. And there are no time constraints. But if I have a track in my possession to work on a guitar part and I'm dawdling, the next member in line for it might give me a nudge after awhile, but no one is operating under any deadline.

If anyone is interested in participating, please drop me a line. All that's required is that (A) you be a musician and (B) you have home recording equipment and access to the internet. Members have been varied and diverse, from the alternative/indie stylings of Mark Saucier over in New Orleans to ex-Soft Boys bassist Matthew Seligman over in England.

Once we've got enough finished songs, then we will cobble together a cd. We have one such cd in existence so far. Have a listen to some of our wild and wacky music here:
http://www.myspace.com/thelearningloversproject
"Aiming to rid the world of negativity!"